Crashing Down
by Ruthlyn
Summary: Sometimes family can cause more pain than the strongest of creatures.
1. Prologue

This is a sequel to _Payon's Darkest_, which in turn is the sequel to_ Beginning of a Merchant's Dream_. As always, I welcome any comments, thoughts, questions, feedback in general.

PROLOGUE

Winters in Rune-Midgard had always been mild. The dead middle was sometimes known to show an inch or two of snowfall in the capital city of Prontera, but usually one never needed to resort to anything heavier than a jacket. Of course, for those who wanted to feel winter the way it should be, Lutie made an excellent vacation spot.

This is what brought the Dark family from Geffen to the town of perpetual winter. The parents, who had not lived in Rune-Midgard their whole lives, wanted their two sons to experience the season as they knew it. As hoped, both boys loved the snow and spent as many daylight hours as possible outside. The eldest son, having recently celebrated his tenth birthday, had a new sled to play with, and enjoyed pulling his 3-year-old little brother around in it.

Now, on this particular afternoon, the parents had left their toddler under the watch of his very responsible older brother as they visited with other vacationers nearby. The older brother ran all around the nearby field of snow, having no obstacles to slow him down, while towing the sled, where the younger sat giggling and screaming with glee.

It was merely one misstep, no fault of the older boy's, no way he could have controlled the outcome. However, when his foot hit a rock hidden in the snow, causing him to fall, and in turn causing the sled to spill the little brother out into the snow, the older brother immediately attempted to right himself to be sure the toddler was okay. The first step he took landed him back in the snow because his right ankle gave out under the weight; he'd sprained it. The toddler's legs, on the other hand, were just fine, and he was up and off chasing a marin, a small purple creature native to this cold region. The injured boy called to his brother to come back, to no avail. He attempted to run after him, but didn't get far. In a second, the child disappeared from sight. Alerted by the yelling, the parents came running. The boy could see now where his brother had gone. He'd fallen through ice into a frozen pond that had been hidden beneath the snow.

Though his father had him out of the icy water quickly, the damage had been done. The toddler did not survive. His brother felt wholly responsible. His parents, while grieving their lost son, unfortunately joined their surviving child in that synopsis. And because of this, they were undoubtedly responsible for the loss of their second son, as they sent him to live with a remote relative in another city.


	2. Chapter 1

A swirl of light snow drifted gently from the gray sky, landing amongst buildings and landscaped trees, and melting on the paved ground. Winter in no way impeded the usual bustle of people in Prontera, and folks went about their business, ignoring the white flakes. Somewhere in the distance, a church bell chimed. It was melody used for the special occasions.

At the Prontera Sanctuary, most of the crowd from inside was gathered outside as the young couple walked out the large wooden doors. The pair, a merchant and a swordsman, joined the rest, while still staying apart from them. They were waiting for one more person to exit the cathedral, someone they wanted to be sure not to miss.

"Missy Kay, my good friend! Naolin, how are you?"

Here she was now, walking out onto the steps, long blue hair almost glittering, despite the gray sky. She was dressed in a long, purple robe, a much deeper color than the usual priestess robes; she was the new First Priestess of the Uniform States of Rune-Midgard.

"Lena, congratulations!" Missy greeted her. Naolin simply nodded.

"Thank you," the priestess replied. "I am thrilled you were both able to make it."

Lena Isabelle, whom Missy had met as a novice, had been an acolyte when she first helped Missy return to Alberta to become a merchant. The two had become close friends over time, mostly through letters, though occasionally they'd meet for a few hours if they both managed to be in the same area. She'd not revealed to Missy the special title for which she'd been training, at least not until her training was completed and the ceremony was being planned. Missy was still getting used to the idea that her friend was so famous. This crowd had been at the Sanctuary today specifically to watch Lena receive her position.

Now, as the crowd began to dissipate a little, Naolin excused himself as well. Lena spent some time shaking hands and thanking those who'd stayed to congratulate her. Once almost everyone had gone, they two girls finally had a chance to sit and talk.

"I cannot say for certain, but I feel something terrible has happened," Lena was saying. "As soon as my training was finished, he disappeared; I have not heard from him since." She was talking about her training partner, the mage she'd written to Missy about once. "We are not close friends, but we have trained together a lot over the last year. I did not expect him to miss the ceremony.

"You think he's in some kind of trouble?" Missy inquired.

"I have no way of knowing, though it is a question I have contemplated. However, it is a question I am unable to answer at present." After a pause, the priestess changed the subject. "How is Naolin?"

Missy sighed. She didn't really know how to answer that. "He's okay, I suppose." The truth was, she didn't think he was okay.

It had been over a year ago that Naolin had sat her down on the dock in Alberta and told her about his abandonment as a child. The story of his brother's death and how his parents had blamed him and sent him away saddened Missy. If it hadn't been for the man who took him into his home in Payon, he would be an entirely different person today. Naolin couldn't clearly map out his relation to the man, but Naolin referred to him as his uncle.

"He became like a father to me," Naolin had said. "At least, more of a father than mine ever was." The swordsman had went on to tell her of how he eventually came to realize with no doubt that his baby brother's death had not been his own fault. It was merely an accident, an event he could not have stopped.

As he was finally beginning to feel at home with this relative, Naolin's happiness crashed once again. His uncle was sent by the hunter's guild into the black of Greenwood Forest to attempt the rescue of an important member of the Payon council who had been stupid enough to venture into the forest, and hadn't returned. Naolin, who had recently become a novice, begged his uncle to let him come, but his uncle said he was too young and far too weak. His uncle never came back.

The hunter's guild felt guilty enough to provide a little support for Naolin through his novice time, but he soon learned to take care of himself. When the fire broke out in Greenwood Forest a year or so later, Naolin had been so adamant about helping for a reason that even he knew made no sense. He held out a wild hope that his uncle would still be alive somehow, and that he could find him and save him. When Naolin told her about this part, he had once again touched his left shoulder out of habit. Missy wondered if he thought of his uncle in those moments or his brother.

In the time they'd spent since he'd shared his past with her, the two had grown to trust each other so much more. Their friendship had also become stronger. While he was still quite arrogant and abrasive at times, Missy thought he acted at least a little happier and more comfortable around her. However, ever since they'd come back to Prontera for Lena's appointment ceremony, he'd become quiet and sullen once again. What was incredible for Missy was that even after all that had happened in the last year, he still wouldn't tell Missy what was bothering him.

Sitting next to her friend now, Missy smoothed her shoulder-length white hair in frustration. "I don't know," she added to her response to Lena's question about Naolin. "I think I'll go find out for sure."

The young merchant wandered around the crowded city streets for a while, knowing that if Naolin was out here, she was unlikely to find him. In truth, she wasn't searching too hard; she always enjoyed browsing shops along the sidewalks and observing the people in the street as she moved amongst them. She had her eye out for one particular item in the merchants' signs, and when she spotted what she was looking for at a low enough price, she made a purchase.

She went back to the inn to put this new item in her room, as she did not particularly want to carry it around in her cart all day. There was an envelope on the table in her room, with no addressee on it. Curious, she picked it up to read the contents.

_Dear Son,  
What can we say to you that will make up for the last seven years? "We're sorry" does not remotely cover it. We never should have let you blame yourself for your brother's accident…_

This letter was not for Missy; it had to be for Naolin. She knew she should put it down, but there was not much left to read. The letter went on to say how much his parents wanted to see him, especially with his birthday approaching.

Why was this letter delivered to her room, she wondered. She opened the door and read the room number. As she suspected, it was the wrong room; she was in Naolin's room. Her face flushed with embarrassment as she quickly replaced the letter in its envelope, and placed it where she'd found it. Picking up her package, she hurried to her own room next door to drop it off there.

Recalling now how the seal had already been broken on the envelope when she'd picked it up, a detail she hadn't noticed at the time, she realized what had been bothering her friend since they'd gotten to Prontera. She'd wanted to know, but not like this.

In light of this new information, Missy decided to put her recent purchase back into her cart and try to go find Naolin after all. Only this time, she went straight to where she knew he was likely to be. And it wasn't in Prontera at all.

It only took her a few minutes to walk to the nearby coastal town of Izlude, and she found Naolin sitting on a bench not far from the second bridge into town. It was the only one that faced out at the ocean instead of toward the street. She sat down next to him, noticing the pink blob hopping around in a small strip of grass nearby. She had wondered where Beanbag had wandered off to. For a little bit, no one spoke. The silence was comfortable, and Missy found no reason to break it right away.

After a few minutes, though, she did. "Been here long?"

Naolin shrugged. "I did a little shopping in the city, felt like getting away from the crowd for a while."

While he continued to stare absently out at the ocean, Missy reached over to her cart and pulled out the item she'd purchased earlier. It was a pair of boots with a slot in the right heel for a card that would magically enhance the wearer in some way, depending on the card that was inserted.

"I did a little shopping myself," Missy said. Finally Naolin looked over at her.

He let out a low whistle. "Slotted boots, very nice." She held them out for him to take, and he hesitated, unsure as to what she wanted him to do.

"Happy birthday," Missy said softly as he took them from her.

* * *

"What?" Naolin was completely caught off-guard. His seventeenth birthday was indeed in three days, but it had been over a year ago that he'd even mentioned to her when it was. The last birthday present he'd ever gotten had been that sled from his parents seven years ago.

"Thank you," he said, finding the words an understatement of how he felt. Making eye contact for the first time since they'd come to Prontera, he added, "This means a lot to me, thank you." The smile he received was enough to counter the logic he'd come up with to explain why he didn't want to tell her what had been bothering him. She deserved to know.

He waited for a few minutes, deciding how to bring it up, then finally spoke. "My parents sent me a letter. They want me to go and visit them so I can apologize for leaving seven years ago."

"Leaving?" Missy question. "But I thought--"

"Yeah, well, that's kind of the problem. It seems they've conveniently forgotten that they had any fault in this. They'd rather believe that I ran away because I was so ashamed than that they actually sent away the only son they had left." Looking at Missy again, he clarified, "Which is exactly what happened."

Missy looked a little confused, maybe even skeptical. "Your parents really wrote you a letter asking you to apologize?"

"Essentially," he replied. "That's not exactly what it said, but it's what they want."

Missy told him of how she'd accidentally read his letter, seeming fairly embarrassed about it. Naolin felt he should be angry about this violation of his privacy, but he really wasn't.

"I would say you don't know my parents like I do, but then, I don't know them myself. Either way, it doesn't matter; I'm not going back there. I'm over that place."

He hadn't intended to sound quite as angry as he knew he had, and the fact that he got up and left as he said it didn't help. He knew he'd really need to tell her later he wasn't mad at her. He also knew that his reaction proved the opposite of what he'd said. He wasn't completely over this part of his life. And he hated that this was happening now, when he was finally starting to think that he could be happy again.

He didn't know how long he'd been sitting on the chair in his room, staring at the envelope, trying not to think about what was inside, and failing miserably. When the knock came at the door, he glanced out the window before answering it. It was getting dark outside. They hadn't made plans to go back to training right after the priestess's ceremony, but he certainly hadn't meant to waste the day sitting around.

"Missy." He'd opened the door to find her standing there. He couldn't decipher her mood; her eyes were vacant, and her face was expressionless. He'd upset her…he should say something.

"I've just received a message from my father," she said in a subdued tone. "He's requested our help."

"Anything," was Naolin's response, without hesitation.

"He's had trouble with his usual supplier of iron, coal, even steel, and wanted to know if we would be able to bring him some, as much as we can procure. I've done a little research, and there is a cave northwest of here, closer to Geffen, where metals of the sort are said to be the most prevalent. I think we'll be okay there if we're careful. If we're going to walk, I suggest we wait until tomorrow. I think I can easily find us a warp there though."

The prospect of getting back into some action was appealing to Naolin. Usually he preferred to walk from town to town, they both did, really. However, he was also eager to help the man who had been so kind to him over the last year and a half. Free weapons from a master blacksmith like Bramen were nothing to scoff at.

"Go look for a warp, I'll be right behind you." As soon as the door closed, he sat down to change out his old, worn shoes for his new boots. And they were in pristine condition too. Not a tear, not a scuff, not a single sign of bring worn even once. He knew Missy had to have saved up for many months to afford this gift for him. And he'd shown his appreciation by storming out on her. As he headed out of the inn, he resolved to not let these two virtual strangers ruin his life this way. He knew what he had to do.

He found Missy at "warp alley", a back street in Prontera which was given that name due to the variety of priests and acolytes that tended to congregate there selling warp portals. She was talking and laughing with a young priest who acted as though he knew Missy. When she saw Naolin coming, she gave the priest a quick hug, after which he opened the portal for her.


	3. Chapter 2

Missy stepped through the swirling light, seeing a completely different city on the other side. From the white streets of Prontera to the gray pavement of Geffen, the two cities contrasted considerably. The capital city was always loud, crowded, and alive with movement at all hours of the day, and often through the night. This city they were standing in now was quiet, the people were sparse, and the pace of life was generally slower, almost lazy.

As they headed toward the nearest Kafra employee, as they always did when they came to a new city to train, Naolin casually asked, "Was he a friend of yours?"

Missy couldn't believe she'd run into her old friend from her novice days. Taren was from Alberta like her, and they'd both become novices together. They'd trained together at first, but it was not long before her father's illness forced her to put her training on hold. He had continued on to become an acolyte long before she was able to take her merchant quest. Seeing him as a priest had surprised her, but he explained that he'd joined a guild that was in desperate need of a few good priests, and had helped him speed through his acolyte training.

She explained who Taren was to Naolin, and chuckled, adding, "I suppose if my father hadn't fallen ill, I might be here with him instead of you." Naolin didn't seem to find that amusing, though she wasn't sure if it was just because of this mood he was in, or if it really bothered him somehow.

They were at the Kafra now though, and they registered themselves with her so that their butterfly wings would bring them back here instead of whatever city they'd been training near last. Though it was dark now, she had expected him to want to get to the Coal Mines, as this cave they were heading for was called, as soon as they reached Geffen, but now he didn't seem to be in much of a hurry.

"Shall we call it a night, and just get an early start tomorrow?" he suggested, to her surprise.

"Uh, sure, sounds ok to me."

"I'll see you in the morning then." She hesitated, confused at the situation and why he was not going to the inn now too. Noticing her uncertainty, he offered a short explanation. "I've got a little bit of last-minute shopping to do before tomorrow."

She didn't know if she even believed him, but headed north to the inn anyway. She spent about twenty minutes in her room, mostly writing letters, the most common activity for her when she managed to be in a town for a night. She hadn't had a chance to reply to her father's message, so she did so now, and she also offered a more detailed explanation to Lena for her sudden departure from Prontera. After doing so, she contemplated the current situation with her friend in depth, and realized she knew what Naolin was doing right now. He had mentioned once, only in passing, that he had lived in Geffen as a child. It was more of a vague reference, but it had been obvious which city he was referring to.

Missy left her room quickly and headed out of the inn. She was not completely sure of what she was doing, or how she'd go about it, but she was determined nonetheless.

* * *

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Naolin had taken his time getting here. Knowing what he needed to do and actually doing it were two different things. Even after finally making his way here, he'd since been standing outside of this door for a number of minutes, growing angrier every minute that he was letting himself be this way. He knew why he needed to go in there. He had to verify that he was right, that they only wanted him to visit so he could take the blame for their mistakes, so they could feel less guilty. He was also curious as to why now, after seven years, they chose to contact him. And now he was stalling. 

He started to back away, he didn't know why. This had to be done, he couldn't leave now. There was a sound, to his left, a familiar figure in the shadows.

"I know you're probably looking to go in there alone, and I respect that. I just wanted to let you know that I'm here if you need me."

He had no idea how Missy had found him here at the small house on the outskirts of town, or why she'd come, but he found himself desiring her support more than he ever would have imagined. He held his hand out, and she took it after only a moment's hesitation. "Come with me?" It was more a statement, a plea, than a question. She smiled and nodded. He felt a little calmer already.

Turning back to face the door he'd previously been unable to approach, he now rapped hard on it and took a deep breath.

* * *

It had been easy to find this place. The first city official Missy had found knew exactly who she was talking about when she explained who she was looking for. Apparently everyone in Geffen knew about the quiet, solitary couple living on the edge of town.

The man who answered the door bore only a vague resemblance to Naolin, in her opinion. This man was obviously not a warrior, not an adventurer, he looked like he'd barely been outside in years.

"Naolin," he said without so much as a smile.

"Father," Naolin responded with a similar tone. Not exactly a warm homecoming. Missy noticed a woman now coming into the room. When she saw her son standing at the door, she looked as though she might cry. However, instead of running to greet her long-lost son, like she appeared to want to do, she sat in a chair across the room and stared at her hands in her lap.

"Please, come in," Naolin's father offered, opening the door wider. Missy followed Naolin as he stepped inside the door and to the right, just far enough out of the way for the door could be shut.

"Mother, Father, this is my friend Missy Kay," he introduced her politely. His parents simply nodded at her, barely even looking her way. She returned the gesture.

"Have a seat," his mother suggested, her voice heavy with emotion.

"No, thanks," Naolin replied, not moving.

His father cleared his throat, then got straight to the point. "Son, your mom and I are moving. Leaving Rune-Midgard, going back to where we lived before you were born." He paused as if waiting for a response from his son. None came. "We would like you to come with us. We want to try and salvage our family before it is too late."

Naolin scoffed at that statement. "You haven't contacted me for seven years, and you think I'd leave my home to move who knows where to live with _you_?"

"Naolin," his mother pleaded. "Please, at least consider this. What could there possibly be for you here? We're your family. This land brings nothing but death and sorrow and pain, _nothing_ good." Missy noticed a pointed glance in her direction as the woman finished her rant.

His father tried again. "Son, we're giving you an opportunity to correct a mistake. We know about your mother's kinsman who you went to stay with. After his death, we had hoped you would come back to live with us. Obviously, you were waiting to be invited, to know for sure we still love you; well, that's what we're doing."

"I wasn't waiting for anything," Naolin corrected him. "You sent me away, you told me having me around was too difficult for Mother, you told me what I did was too horrible. You made it very clear that you did not want me to be your _son_ anymore when you sent me across the country to live with a stranger. This is not my mistake to fix."

"You have to understand," his mother explained, now visibly holding back tears. "We were mourning, we were upset; you can't hold that against us."

"I was ten years old!" Naolin snapped. Missy was completely stunned by his uncharacteristic outburst. "You let me believe that I killed my little brother, that I was a _killer_. I was a child!"

Naolin's mother stood up and left the room now, and Missy could hear her sobbing. His father turned his back and sighed. Naolin looked over at her now, his face calmer than she imagined it should be after the exchange that had taken place so far.

"Come on, we're done here," he said as he headed toward the door next to her.

"Son, wait," his father began, turning back to face them.

"I am not your son," Naolin stopped him with a clear, firm voice. "You made that decision long ago, and I believe I am better for it." With that, he ushered Missy out the door, following her and shutting the door resolutely behind them. He walked quickly toward the inn, and Missy matched his pace. When they reached the building, he stopped just outside the door. For a few moments, he didn't move or speak, he just stood there, breathing deeply.

"Are you okay?" Missy asked, finding it a stupid question even as she asked it.

"I will be," was his response. "It's intriguing, really. I should be angry at those monsters, but I'm not, not really. I mostly just pity them. They are going to be lonely and miserable the rest of their lives, no matter where they live, and they have no one to blame but themselves."

They walked into the inn and up the stairs. In the hall outside their rooms they said good night. Naolin said he was looking forward to exploring the mines in the morning, and Missy was happy they had a mission here to give him something to focus on. He'd said he felt better now, and she could see he clearly did, but an encounter like that was still something one didn't simply shake off. Meeting Naolin's parents certainly reminded her of how lucky she was to have parents who truly loved her and wanted the best for her. As she fell asleep, she reminded herself to tell them both as much the next time she saw them. And she was more determined now than ever to bring her father as much coal and metal as she could drag out of that place.

* * *

Early the next morning, both were eager to get started on this task. They began their trek north and east following a well-worn path which, according to Missy's research, would bring them through a rocky, hilly terrain, which otherwise would be impossible to traverse. They passed a large variety of creatures, including the numerous insect monsters, creamies, hornets, horns, and also caramels and cocos, all of which they left alone.

They'd been walking for two hours now, maybe more. Naolin wasn't really paying attention to time, or even where they were going. Missy knew about the path they were taking far better than he did, so he was letting her lead and for once, he was simply enjoying the scenery. When he saw the old, weathered mine car track, he knew they were close. Sure enough, across a shallow creek stood the gaping mine entrance. Outside of it, a few adventurers sat or stood, talking or simply resting. And in the midst of them was another Kafra employee. Missy and Naolin registered with this much closer Kafra and headed into the cave quickly.

Once inside, they found narrow, man-made passages, carts, and mining tools, in varying stages of disrepair and decay. They came upon a dead end more than once, but they were moving quickly, so they were able to find the next area, which was obviously set apart from this section, without wasting too much time. Closer to the entrance of the cave, there were mostly just rodents and ants, which ignored anyone passing by who left them alone. There were also a few bats that did attack without warning, but they were downed easily enough.

Naolin knew Missy had a renewed drive to fulfill Bramen's request, and he felt it too. When one had a family they could really count on, they'll do anything to help them. By now the blacksmith had given his daughter three swords – fire, ice, and wind. Even Naolin had been gifted fire and wind swords, with the promise that an earth elemental weapon would be waiting for him when he next visited. Naolin had never expected to be included in Bramen's plan to give Missy a full set, but she told him her father had suggested just that. Naolin genuinely no longer felt that he deserved any kind of reward for training with Missy, which was why he was so willing to do whatever he could to repay Bramen now.

In the next area, they were faced with a veritable labyrinth of walls and chain-link fencing. As they made their way through this maze, Missy quietly provided the brief history of this place that she'd learned from her research, and also explained what they'd be facing.


	4. Chapter 3

"They call it the coal mines, but there's no coal, or metal of any kind really, even left to be mined here." When he gave her a puzzled look, she continued. "Long ago, when mining operations here were in full swing, there was a huge accident. The book I read wasn't clear. But it did say all of the miners died. It was a horrible tragedy." They turned a corner and were attacked by a bat. It died quickly. "So basically, the room where this catastrophe took place, and it's said to be a monstrous room, is populated with spirits of the men who died. They call them skeleton workers, and apparently they've hoarded vast amounts of iron, coal, even steel, and the only way to get it from them is to kill them."

"Sounds simple enough," was Naolin's response. Missy chuckled. "Well, if we can ever get there." They'd hit another dead end. As they turned around and chose another direction, Naolin grumbled, "I think we've been this way already." Even Beanbag seemed frustrated at the confusion, as his normally cheerful demeanor and exuberant bounce had been replaced by a frown and more of a shuffle.

"Do you hear voices?" Missy asked in a sudden whisper.

Naolin started to shake his head, then stopped as he heard them too. He turned around and saw two figures come around the corner behind them, walking quickly, and not apparently attempting to be quiet. The huntress and priestess slowed down only a bit when they saw the merchant and swordsman, and walked by with barely a nod. One of them glanced at the poring, then whispered something to the other. They both giggled as they rounded another corner. Without discussion, Naolin and Missy both followed the girls quickly. They seemed confident in where they were going, leading Naolin to assume they'd been here before. He was anxious to kill something, and more importantly, to get out of this mess.

Sure enough, after a half a dozen more corners, Naolin and Missy found themselves in an open area, facing a large, rock doorway.

"That has to be it," Missy stated. The girls they'd followed were nowhere in sight, but there was little doubt that she was right. Knowing where they were going now, Naolin and Missy slowed down, wanting to be sure they were ready to fight. They checked potions and verified that they both were carrying the best elemental weapon, which was fire in this case. Missy reminded Naolin that she had plenty of orange potions in her cart if he ran out. Some of them were even his.

They took only a minute to get ready, and were soon walking swiftly toward the entrance. Naolin was in the lead now, and Missy ran into him when he suddenly stopped.

"Whoa," she marveled, standing next to him now.

They were standing on the edge of a precipice, the bottom of which was not visible in the darkness. It was clear that the only way to reach their destination would be by way of another mine cart track that spanned the blackness, connecting the floor they were standing on to the room beyond the doorway they were facing. Missy wasn't really afraid of heights, but this was a special situation. Naolin gave her a quick grin, then carefully started across the gap. Missy coaxed Beanbag into her cart, took a deep breath, and followed. The path was a little wider than she'd made it out to be in her mind, and it seemed someone had reinforced the majority of it with wood planks, so there were few gaps below her feet. However, she still didn't like the feeling of being balanced over an endless cavern. She breathed a sigh of relief when her feet were on solid ground. Naolin looked amused by her concern, and she scowled at him as he rushed her further into the room.

"Relax, I'm coming," she assured him, reaching up to smooth her hair, a habit that served to calm her down at times. "I just think there should be railings, that's all."

"I'll agree with you there," Naolin chuckled. "Come on, let's get started."

With that, they were on their way. As they'd learned to do over time, they did not venture far into the room until they'd fought one of their targets and felt confident in their skills in the unfamiliar territory. This did not take long. After a few hours of hunting, her cart was already noticeably heavier, filling up with various metals. However, they planned to spend a few days hauling out cartfuls to store with the Kafra employee outside. But first they had to make it through today.

"How long do you think we can stay back here?" Naolin's whisper would have been impossible to hear had she not been so close to him. They had taken a short break for lunch, though down here, their only indication that it was lunch time was how hungry they were. They didn't have a lot of options of safe places for even a five minute break, so they ducked behind a tall stack of crates that sat about three feet from the hard, cold cave wall. After only a few minutes of sitting, hidden from view, they found themselves surrounded by far more monsters than they cared to mess with.

"I don't know," Missy replied to Naolin in as quiet a voice as she could manage. "It only takes one to spot us and bring them all to us." He nodded in agreement. He took another quick look past the boxes, and motioned for Missy to give him a few more potions out of her cart. She did so very carefully, afraid of hearing the clink of two bottles hitting together. When she turned to hand him the potions, his eyes were wide, not so much with fear as with concern. He mouthed, _Don't move_. Missy froze.

After a few eternal minutes, Naolin exhaled sharply. "We can't stay here like this," he whispered. Looking out at the situation once more, he spoke again. "When I say go, just follow me; stay against the wall and move fast." Missy gripped her cart handle and made sure she was ready to move. When the command came, she hurried after him.

They moved quickly and cautiously, and were many yards away from their hiding place before they were spotted. Missy didn't see the dark figure hurrying toward her, lantern held out in front to light its way. She didn't realize it was targeting her until she heard the tell-tale metallic _Chink!_ as it swung its pickax at her head. It was nothing but reflex that caused her to duck at the last second, allowing the ax to be safely embedded into the rock wall instead of her skull. Naolin turned back quickly, already drawing his sword. He kicked the skeleton worker hard in the chest, pushing it away from his crouching friend and the ax it had been reaching for. Missy took the hand he offered to help her up, and then drew her own sword. Coming back now was the still unarmed worker and a few fresh ones.

"Time to get back to work," Naolin grinned.

"You think that's enough?" Naolin asked, throwing a piece of iron on top of a pile that was so high, it threatened to spill out of the cart.

"For today, maybe," Missy replied.

"You know what I meant."

"Then yes, let's get out of here."

They both crushed their butterfly wings in their hands, transporting them outside of the cave and a few feet away from a Kafra employee, a different woman than was there this morning, who smiled politely at them. It was dark out now, Missy guessed a few hours before midnight. Nearby, there was a small group of people sitting or lying on the ground around a campfire, still burning strong. Missy and Naolin had run across this once or twice before, mostly outside of caves or other dungeons, where fighters would gather when they weren't inside battling monsters. In the winter, mostly at night, someone might build a fire in a common resting area, and whoever happened to be outside at any point throughout the night would keep it going, for warmth, light, and a place where strangers would feel comfortable together. Missy was exhausted, hungry, and starting to grow cold, so she was very happy that the fire was here tonight. She and Naolin found a spot near the fire and sat down, eating supper quickly before falling asleep. She'd store her cartful of metal in the morning, and take out some more of the potions she kept there to replenish what they'd used today. For now, she just wanted to sleep.

The next morning, Missy awoke to a gray, unhappy sky. She shivered as she sat up and looked around. The fire was down to coals, and she appeared to be the only one awake. Even the Kafra employee looked to be asleep standing up. Missy headed towards the closest trees she could see and found some sticks and brush to stoke the fire back up. She sat back on the cold ground as close to the fire as she could stand to warm herself. She'd wait until Naolin woke up and they were ready to go back in to bug the Kafra woman. Missy couldn't imagine having such a job…

The morning was so quiet; she was almost uncomfortable being the only one awake, seeing all of the others laying around her asleep. She wondered what time it was, and if she should just wake Naolin now.

"What? Oh, dear," she heard from behind her. It was the Kafra. She was apparently awake now, and seemed a little embarrassed. Her outburst also seemed to have roused many of the others who'd been asleep, Naolin included. He sat up quickly and brushed a lock of brown hair out of his eye.

"Missy," he said groggily.

"Good morning," she replied cheerfully, handing him a banana from her cart.

"Thanks. What time is it?"

"I'm guessing no later than seven, but it's hard to tell with the sky so overcast."

"It's 7:15." The young man sitting across the fire from them was replacing a pocket watch. Naolin nodded his thanks. The man was cooking some meat over the fire, and he offered some to Missy and Naolin. Missy in turn gave him an apple to eat with his breakfast. They shared a few minutes of small talk, after which Naolin and Missy decided it was time to get ready to go. They thanked the young man and stood up.

Naolin waited patiently while Missy went to the Kafra to swap out the items in her cart. When she gave the Kafra her name so she could access her storage, the woman's face lit up with familiarity.

"Ah, yes, Missy Kay! I'm glad you've finally come. I received an urgent message for you from Jayde yesterday afternoon." The cheerful smile never left the woman's face, though the idea of an urgent message didn't sound like a good thing to Missy. She took the paper the Kafra gave her and her much lighter cart and walked over to where Naolin was waiting.

"Who's Jayde?" he asked, noticing the change in her demeanor.

"It's my mother. Change of plans, they need us back there as soon as possible."

"What's going on?"

"I don't know, she didn't say. We can always come back later, we have a good start."

Naolin agreed, and they decided to try to find someone to warp them to Alberta, or at least to Payon. Missy was holding a blue gemstone that she'd retrieved from her storage after she read the letter; it was needed for the _warp portal_ skill, and they knew that priests and acolytes so far from town were less willing to use their own gem to warp someone, payment or no.

Fortunately, it was rather common for a priest or an acolyte to have Payon as a warp destination, so it didn't take long for Missy and Naolin to be standing in town. The mass of people seemed considerably thicker than when they were last here, but there was no time to find out if there was a reason behind that. Wasting no time on searching for a warp this time, they walked straight to the Payon Kafra employee and paid her to send them to Alberta.

Back in her own hometown now, Missy hurried from the south side of town where the Kafra warp deposited them, northeast toward her house. There were more people wandering the streets in this town than she was used to too, and she wasn't sure if she should be worried or not. As it was, she was imagining all sorts of horrible things that her parents would need to see her about, and she knew that what she could dream up was probably worse than reality. Even so, she just wanted to get home and hear how bad it was, or if it was even bad at all. The message didn't give any indication one way or the other.

When she reached her house, she rushed through the door and stopped suddenly when she a handful of people scattered around her kitchen. Most were familiar faces, a few were strangers. Her parents were not in the room at all.

"She's here," she heard someone whisper.

"Take her in," came another voice. "Young man, you should stay out here."

"No," Missy said, still at a loss as to what could be going on, but feeling more panicked by the minute. "He can come with me."

One woman frowned her disagreement, but Naolin was ushered into the sitting room along with her. Funny how she could feel like a visitor in her own home. She was relieved to see her mother in the room when they entered, but she was obviously upset. She looked up and attempted to reassure her daughter with a smile. It failed; Missy could see she'd been crying. Her mother sat down and gestured for Missy to join her.

"Mom, what's going on? What happened?" Her mind worked through the key person who was missing, but she didn't want to think about what that meant. She closed her eyes. "Is it Dad?"

"Yes," she heard her mother say. "Missy, he's dead."


	5. Chapter 4

_No, this is wrong, this – I shouldn't be here. This is so personal_. Naolin glanced at the door, wondering if he should just leave. _Maybe she'll need me to be here for her. Her father did just die_. A connection was made in his mind now. _Bramen just died_. This was not just any man. Naolin realized that he would never have his chance to repay him, even to just thank him, for everything the man had done for him. And it wasn't just the swords he'd been given; a few years ago this man had essentially taken Naolin into his home, let him live there for a few months while Naolin and Missy trained nearby. Barmen would never know how much Naolin appreciated him_. What are we going to do with all that iron and steel?_

Missy looked up at him for the first time, her tear-filled eyes showing the pain she was feeling. He wasn't sure what he should do, so he simply stood where he was and tried to "be here" for her…whatever that meant.

Missy and her mother talked quietly for a little bit, as Jayde explained to her what happened – how he'd still been a little weak from the illness years ago, but that he'd been pushing himself to get back to full speed, and just working too hard. When Missy excused herself to get some fresh air, she left Naolin and her mother alone in the room. Jayde stood up, but didn't move.

"Naolin. I am so sorry you had to be here for this. It might help Missy to have a friend around though." Now she walked to the opposite side of the room and brought something back, holding it out to him. "This is the last sword my husband finished. It is the earth tsurugi that he promised you."

Naolin held up his hand. "I can't take that, it means far too much."

"It's not your choice to make. He made this sword for you; it is yours." She held it out to him again, and he took it, thanking her. "I would appreciate it if you would go and check on my daughter."

Naolin obliged, walking outside to find Missy. She was coming toward the house now, from the west, towing her cart, which was piled high once again with the coal and steel they'd found in the mine yesterday. Before he had a chance to ask, she pulled the cart up and set it beside him.

"Get rid of this stuff, I don't want to see it again." He was about to ask her if she this is what she really wanted, but the resoluteness in her face made him stop. He simply nodded. Missy walked away again, in the opposite direction she'd come. He wasn't sure if he should follow her or not. Before he had much time to ponder the situation, the door to Missy's house opened, and the people who had been in the kitchen came out and went their separate ways, followed by Jayde, who was saying goodbye to the last of them. Naolin glanced at Missy's cart. He may have been unsure about a lot of what he was supposed to do during all of this, but he did know what to do about one thing.

* * *

The young woman sat on the docks, staring out at the ocean. Her thoughts were on nothing but the waves, and yet she couldn't keep the tears from filling her eyes. She heard footsteps on the wooden planks behind her, dried her eyes quickly, and stood up. The man walking by nodded at her, but she merely looked down and started walking away.

Missy took the long way toward the city gates, to avoid walking by her house. She did not particularly want to be alone with her thoughts anymore, but she also did not want to see any friends or family just yet. The main gate of Alberta was where people congregated here, assuming there were any people in the small, out-of-the-way town.

As Missy had noticed when they first arrived here, there were noticeably more people than usual in Alberta. She sat on a bench near a merchant she'd never seen before and listened to the voices around her.

"It's a shame, really."

"You're darn right it is! I finally saved enough zeny for one of his fire claymores. Now where am I going to get a sword with that kind of quality?"

Missy was glad when those two walked away. _A claymore! My father's dead and he's worried about a sword._ She closed her eyes. This was a nightmare; one simple statement, one moment in time, could cause her entire world to come crashing down around her. Her life, her family, her entire existence, was now lying in ruins on the ground around her.

More voices reached her ears, another group of people passing by her bench.

"Not really the best timing though," one was saying.

"How were they supposed to know that something like this would happen? At least it's the next town over, and five days gives us plenty of time to pay our respects."

Missy was having a difficult time believing that so many people had come all the way here because of her father. It seemed to be the most popular topic in the various conversations she heard around her though. That and some big event going on in Payon, apparently in five days.

The numbness in Missy's mind was starting to spread to the rest of her body, as the temperature was dropping. She'd left the house without so much as a jacket, and had been gone quite a bit longer than she'd realized. Time to go back and face those she'd been avoiding.

When she got back home, she found her mom sitting at the kitchen table with papers spread out in front of her. She stood up to greet her daughter when she came in, giving her a hug, which Missy could barely return.

"How are you, dear?" Jayde asked.

Missy attempted a weak smile. "I'll be okay." She sat down as he mom began to gather up the papers on the table.

"Would you like something to eat?" Jayde placed a dish on the table. "One of the ladies left this for us."

Missy shook her head. "I don't know, I'm not really hungry." Her mother frowned, but didn't push the issue. Missy glanced around. "Where's Naolin?"

"I believe he went to find you. That's one remarkable friend you've got there."

"I should go find him," Missy said, standing up and heading for the door.

"He should be back soon," her mother called after her. She was already out the door. She wandered the streets for about ten minutes before she saw the silhouette of a boy walking with a poring in the fading sunlight. She headed toward them.

* * *

When Naolin finally found Missy, he thought she was happy to see him…maybe. She told him he should come back to the house, that it was supper time and he was probably hungry. Famished was more like it, but he was far less worried about himself right now. Before they got back to the house, he stopped her.

"Missy, here, I wanted to give you this," he said, pulling out the sword that Jayde had given him.

Missy's eyes flashed with anger. "It's a sword. Is that all you people care about!" Her face softened a little after her outburst, but she still turned and marched into the house before he could explain. He didn't know what "you people" meant exactly, but he knew enough to put away the tsurugi for now. Back in the house, Jayde was alone in the kitchen again. He didn't even have to ask the question.

"She's in her room," Jayde explained. "I sent a plate of food in with her. Here, you should eat too." He sat down at the table and accepted the food she offered him. "Missy said something before she went to her room. She suggested that you go home for a while, until this all blows over."

Naolin stopped mid-chew. "She did?"

Jayde nodded. "I'm sure she just doesn't feel that you should have to go through all of this."

Naolin kept eating in silence. When he was done, he was ready to go to bed himself. But before he went to his cot in the back room, he stopped to ask Jayde a question. "Do you think I should go? You said she might want me around, but I think she mostly just seems to want to be alone."

Jayde looked at him for a moment, her face clearly showing pain and sadness for the first time since Naolin and Missy had found her in the sitting room. "Honestly, I couldn't even tell you. Maybe she does just need to be alone, or maybe today isn't any indication." Naolin nodded, then headed to bed. He didn't really know if he should go or not. He didn't want to leave his friend in such a mess, but he really couldn't help feeling that he was intruding in the personal affairs of someone else's family.

Back in his little room now, he thought about his indecisiveness today, and how he was becoming weak and helpless. He grew angrier and angrier until finally he lashed out, swinging his sword at a chair in the room. As it fell to pieces, Beanbag scrambled frantically out the door he hadn't realized he'd left open partially open. Closing it in just short of a slam, he irately thought, _Let her send me away, I don't need this. Serves me right for ignoring every instinct I had, and staying around one person for too long_. He had a half a mind to just go now, he wouldn't even look back, but he truly was exhausted and couldn't fathom any more traveling tonight. Tomorrow he'd wake up early and be gone before anyone noticed.

* * *

Missy woke with a start, sweating and panicked. She looked around and tried to comprehend what had happened. She saw the dark figure at the foot of her bed and let out a startled cry. She looked around frantically for her sword, and swung it at the intruder.

"Hey!" the figure cried, jumping away from the blade.

"Naolin?"

"Yes, it's me, what on earth are you doing?"

"I--you scared me, it was just a reaction, sor-- Wait, what are you doing in here?" Missy asked, suddenly uncomfortable.

Naolin shifted uneasily from one foot to the other. "I was awake, I heard you making noises in your sleep. Moaning, whimpering. I thought I should make sure you were ok."

Missy pulled the bed spread close around her, partly because she was self-conscious about him seeing her in her bed clothes, partly in an attempt to provide some comfort after her nightmare. "He was there, but he wasn't. I couldn't…I couldn't see him. It was horrible." She fought off more tears and found herself wishing Naolin would go away and let her be alone.

"Missy," he said quietly, stepping closer. "I cannot begin to know what you're feeling, and I won't even try. But at least know that if there is _anything_ I can do, in whatever capacity, you just have to say the word."

Now that he was nearer to her in the dark, she could see that he was fully clothed, and even his sword was at his side. He was going home, as she'd suggested he do, leaving her alone, exactly as she had wished he would. She pulled her knees up and wrapped her arms around them. "Just…don't mention this to my mom. She doesn't need to worry about me on top of everything else."

"Of course." He moved to the door and stopped before he walked through it. "It's still very early, you should try and get some more sleep."

The thought of going back to that nightmare made Missy shudder. Suddenly, she didn't want to be alone anymore. "Don't go," she said in a voice barely above a whisper.

He was already halfway out the door, but stopped.

"Please, I…I can't…" She didn't know what she was trying to say, or what she even wanted from him. She just shook her head and closed her eyes, giving him leave to go after all. She heard a quiet rustling and a soft thump, and when she opened her eyes, she was quite amazed at the scene. He had taken a chair in her room and placed it next to the door, and he was sitting in it. He looked as if to guard her from any assailant who would wish her harm. And Beanbag, the watch-poring, was on the floor by Naolin's feet. Missy's sleep was much more peaceful the rest of that night.


	6. Chapter 5

The snow was falling heavily in Alberta. Though it was not staying around long once it reached the ground, it was still more snow than anyone was used to seeing outside of Lutie. Missy had told Naolin that it figured that it would be unusually cold, gray, and gloomy, now of all times. Since that first sleepless night, Missy had still been distant, quiet, so uncharacteristic of her normal self, but she was shutting herself off less, disappearing less. The nightmares had plagued her a bit since then, and she mostly just seemed tired. After a few days had been the funeral, and Naolin, along with the rest of the mourners, had followed a respectful distance behind the late blacksmith's family, who clung to each other in silence.

Now, a few days after the funeral, Naolin stood alone as the snow fell around him in the town square of Alberta, a central place that was meant to be the hub of town, but had never managed to be. He was staring at that notice that had been posted, the one that drew as much attention to this corner of Rune-Midgard as the death of Bramen. Once again, the Payon council was calling all able-bodied warriors and healers to meet in their city. The time had come, a moment Naolin had once anticipated with every eager bone in his body. It was time to take the five Greenwood Forest castles by force. His mind raced as he realized what this meant. These were the monsters that had killed his uncle years ago. He knew he had to be a part of this fight. Unfortunately, the sign-up date was tomorrow. According to the notice, this was expected to be a major undertaking, and could take days to finish. Naolin had chosen to stay here with his friend during her hard time, but he couldn't bear to miss this opportunity. He knew the only thing to do was to talk to her and gauge her reaction.

Back at the house, neither Missy nor Jayde were anywhere to be seen. He walked outside and noticed the door to Bramen's shop was open. It was too dark inside to see from the doorway if someone was in there, so he walked inside. Missy stood across the room, in front of her father's forge.

"Hey," he said quietly as he walked in.

She took her time in responding. "I used to sit out here and watch him work for hours. Pumping the bellows, swinging the hammer, creating magnificent works of art from a simple lump of steel." She walked over to a long wooden table cluttered with unfinished blades, mace handles, spear tips, various unused elemental stones, and many other stages of incomplete weapons in progress. In the middle of it all was a book, which is what Missy was reaching for. She opened it up to reveal dozens of worn, handwritten pages. "This book contains all of my father's weapon patterns and special designs. There are a lot of blacksmiths out there, and they are all able to learn the same basic weapon designs. But Bramen made his weapons unique, added his own special touch, customized them. That is why his work was so coveted, and every bit of that is in this book." Her eyes filled with tears, and once again he watched her wipe them away. She picked up the book and took it with her back into the house. Naolin couldn't help but wonder if Missy just held her tears back around him, or if she'd been forcing them back for four full days now. He sighed. He would have wished for a better time to talk to her about the notice from Payon, but this is what he had.

He found her in the sitting room, thumbing through the book. As he sat in a chair near her, she looked over at him.

"I just remembered that your birthday was a few days ago. I'm so sorry I forgot."

"Don't be. I forgot too."

"Well, happy belated birthday anyway." She smiled, which Naolin was happy to see.

"Thank you." He let a few minutes pass before speaking again. "Missy, I need to talk to you about something. I don't know if you've read the notice that's been posted in the town squares." She shook her head. "They're looking to clear the monsters out of those castles in Greenwood Forest, over by Payon."

She knew what that meant. "I see. And this is starting tomorrow?" He nodded, surprised at her correct guess. She explained, "I didn't see the notice, but I've heard a lot of talk from folks around town about some event in Payon, and a few mentioned when it was happening. Are you going to sign up?"

"I want to," he said, then quickly added, "but I wanted to talk to you about it, because I don't want to leave you alone if you still need me here."

She nodded slowly. "You have been looking forward to this since before I met you. I'll be fine. You have already done so much for me over the last few days, I think I can get by for a little while without you." There was no insincerity in her voice, and not a hint of anger or even frustration on her face. That solidified it; he was going to Payon.

Early the next morning Naolin left, insisting that the poring, which seemed to be trying to follow him, stay with Missy, where it would be safe. He made it to Payon in record speed and wasted no time in finding the sign-up sheet and eagerly added his name to it. This event was being organized by the same officials who had run the wolf hunt a year ago, so they'd set up the same amenities. The participants would all be fed any meals they were in town for, and were offered rooms for as many nights as it would take to complete the task. Detailed information about the event would be given that evening at dinner, after sign-up time was officially over.

* * *

Visitors were always coming by. Sometimes they were friends of the family, sometimes relatives, sometimes, and far too often, it was someone wanting to know what was to be done with Bramen's designs. Missy sat alone in her room, hoping to take a break from the condolences, the prying questions, and the food, oh the food! "Here, your loved one just died, you must be hungry!" At least her mom wouldn't have to cook for a month.

When the knock came on her door, Missy groaned. She put down her father's book, which she'd once again been looking through, and answered the door.

"You have a visitor," her mom said.

"_I_ do?" Missy asked. So far, no one who'd come had asked for her specifically. Her mother led her into the sitting room, and Missy was very surprised at who was standing inside.

"Hello, Missy," the boy said, bowing his head slightly.

"Quinn, hi." The archer was not so much a boy anymore. He seemed to have grown a lot over the last year, and was now quite a handsome young man, tall and slender, with piercing green eyes. He was holding a tan hat with a white feather stuck in it. His black hair was a lot longer now, and pulled back in a ponytail.

"I know we haven't kept in touch over the last year, but when I heard about your father…I'm so sorry."

"Thank you. It means a lot to me that you came." She stepped further into the room and offered him a chair. They both sat.

"I won't stay long, I'm to be in Payon by nightfall, but I wanted to come and see you, and ask if there was anything I could do for you." His attitude, his entire personality, had been affected by a year of fierce training, inspired by that day he had spent in the Payon forest. He was more confident in his abilities, while also knowing and respecting his limits. The only reason he was going to Payon to participate in the fight was because the archer guild leader had strongly suggested that he do so. He was happy that this brought him close to Missy's hometown. He knew there really wasn't anything he could do that would help, but this girl had literally changed his life, though she may never know as much.

"I appreciate the offer, but there's not much that can be done, unless you want to take a few relatives with you when you go," she joked, referring to the people in the kitchen that he had to have seen on his way in.

They talked for a few more minutes, mostly catching up, and he stood to leave. "Take care of yourself," were Quinn's parting words.

* * *

"Listen up! My name is Ross, and I am running this mission." The man standing at the front of the room addressing everyone was large and muscular, with tan, leathery skin, and blonde hair. Though he was an older man, he still had a commanding presence, and looked like he could probably defeat most of the people in this room in a duel. And of course, he was a knight.

"I am a retired general in the Prontera guard. The Payon council asked me to lead this fight to make sure it doesn't turn out like last time." Naolin knew all about last time. While he, Missy, and the others were facing turtles and demons, the rest of the group they'd started with had stumbled back into town, small amounts at a time, broken, bruised, and overall beaten. Some were listed as missing for a while. Naolin, Missy, Julius, Evan, and Quinn were included in that list until Julius came back and told their story.

Ross continued. "We're going to do this smart. We will form five groups, as well-rounded as possible. You are expected to stay with your group and work together. We have no way of knowing exactly what you will be dealing with until you get in there. The objective is simple. Kill everything you find. But don't get too eager; there are no rewards for finishing first. In fact, we fully expect this to take a number of days. You are expected to register at the Kafra outside and to be carrying butterfly wings. Every evening at a designated time, you will return to town where you can find supper and a place to sleep for the night. We are not interested in claiming these castles at the expense of our own lives, which is also why you will each receive one of these." He held up a small, disc-shaped object. Naolin had never seen anything like it before.

Ross deferred now to a short man who he said helped create the device and could explain it better. The man skipped an introduction and got right to the point. "This is a communication device, we call it a com-disc. You wear it on your sleeve like so, and it sends sounds waves to your ears, and receives them from your mouth. It's an ingenious mix of science and magic, really. Someday everyone in the country will have one." He looked quite pleased with himself. "It has three settings, changed by a dial." He demonstrated as he explained. "The first setting will connect you to everyone in your guild, providing that you're in one, and that they have the device as well. The second setting transmits to everyone in your current party. The third setting is a direct link to any one other com-disc at a time, which means you can talk to a random person on the other side of the country from you. Did I mention the unlimited range?"

Ross stood back up, taking over again. "Every one of you will get one of these tomorrow morning after you are given your party assignment. They will be yours to keep afterwards as our thanks to you. Now, I'll leave you to your supper. We'll start first thing in the morning."


	7. Chapter 6

The next morning was cold, but no snow was falling. Missy was hurrying home after running a few errands for her mother, eager to get out of the frosty air. When she heard her name being called, she stopped and looked in the direction of the voice. It was Taren, and he looked about ready to cry.

"Missy," he said as he reached her. "I only just heard, I'm so sorry!" He reached out and pulled her close, hugging her tightly. She closed her eyes and fought back her own tears.

Taren's own father had died when he was a baby. While Taren and Missy were young children, and even after they became novices, Bramen had all but claimed Taren as his son. Though he knew he couldn't possibly feel this loss as strongly as Missy did, Taren still mourned Bramen's death as that of a loved one.

When Taren pulled back, he noticed that Missy was shivering. "Come on, let's get you inside." In the kitchen of Missy's house, she and Taren sat and talked for hours, sharing stories of Bramen.

* * *

"Go carefully, I have a feeling we've not seen the real threat." The warning came from the hunter, Dimion, as the knight was ready to turn another corner. The general mood of the group was disappointment, mixed with anticipation. So far, the monsters they'd found had been standard variety creatures, like dokebis, bigfoots, and even wolves, barely a threat to anyone. But, as Dimion had said, there could be plenty more to find. They'd barely been at this three hours, and had a lot more castle to explore. 

In Naolin's party, there were six total people. Besides Dimion and the knight, whose name was Arientuir, there was a rogue named Korinn, a wizard named Sarita, and the group's healer was an acolyte named Emelan. So far, the group of strangers was working together quite well.

"Guys, hold up a sec," called Sarita from the back. She glanced behind her. "I think I heard something." Unfortunately, the knight didn't hear her and turned the corner.

"Arientuir!" Emelan called. "Come back!" The acolyte was suddenly pierced with an arrow, and reacted quickly with a cast of pneuma directly on top of himself. Sarita created an _ice wall_ behind her, blocking the path of a nine tail, which had been the source of the noise she'd heard. As Naolin rushed to attack the archer skeleton that was shooting at Emelan, Arientuir came back around the corner. He was followed by a faint purple glow.

"You've got a friend there," Korinn chuckled. She headed toward Arientuir, disappearing from sight for a moment, reappearing behind the horong that was following the knight, and backstabbing it. This wave of monsters was slightly more difficult than what they'd seen so far, but Naolin knew that this group was still over-qualified for such a fight. This could not possibly be the threat that had once plagued Greenwood Forest.

* * *

The day after Taren visited brought the one person Missy had expected to see much sooner. Lena found Missy taking advantage of slightly warmer weather, and sunshine for the first time in a number of days. It had been a week since Missy had seen Lena, and she was surprised at her friend's state. Her new priestess robe was torn, her hair was a tangled, blue mess, and she looked as though she hadn't slept in a week. 

"I am sorry I could not be here sooner," Lena said, hugging Missy.

"Are you alright?" Missy asked her. "Where have you been?"

"Later, that is not important right now. What is important is you. How are you holding up?"

Missy sighed. "I don't know. I'm trying not to think about it."

"No? I think it is better if you do. I am here if you want to talk."

Missy looked at the ground. She didn't want to say what she really felt; no one would understand.

"Missy?"

She sat right where she stood, on the cold, hard ground, and put her head in her hands. "It's all my fault." She felt like crying once again, and this time had no desire to hold the tears back. But no tears came.

Lena sat on the ground next to her. "Your fault?" she echoed.

"He was not well; he'd never fully recovered from his illness, and he was not strong enough to work as he used to. I should have stayed behind and helped him, I should never have left to train."

"You are not responsible for your father's death. Remember, you told me your parents insisted that you get back to your training. They did not want you to miss out on your own experiences."

"Miss out…" Missy repeated. Finally she looked up. "Do you have any idea how many people would have loved to work with Bramen? My mom told me…he never took an apprentice because he was keeping the position open for me. I had not decided what I wanted to do – I still don't think I have – and he was waiting. I should have agreed to forge and learn under him. Or I should have told them I did not want to be a forging blacksmith, that I never would, and he could have found someone who _wanted_ to help him. I…I should have done something."

Missy was silent for a while, and Lena did not respond, knowing full well that her words could not help. Eventually Missy stood back up, and Lena followed suit. "I'm sorry," Missy said quietly as she brushed dirt off of her clothes.

"No," Lena stopped her before she had a chance to say any more. "Do not apologize. And do not think for a moment that you cannot tell me anything that is troubling you."

Missy looked at her friend. "And what about you? It's obvious that something is wrong."

Lena glanced at the empty street around her before replying. "Something, yes, but I cannot say exactly what."

"Is it about your mage friend?" Missy guessed.

"Alexander," Lena nodded.

"Then he is in trouble."

"He did not tell me much. But he seems to be on the run, from whom I can only guess. It appears he is practically living in Glast Heim, and it was not easy to find him. And he is a wizard now; he took the test in Geffen while I was at my ceremony. Why he felt the need to rush his job change and miss mine in the process, I do not know. But the concern he feels is real, and I trust that enough to want to know more about why he is in hiding."

"Wow," was all Missy could manage. She knew nothing about the situation, even Lena seemed to know very little, but Missy had never seen the priestess quite so unnerved. "So what happens now? Do you go back to Glast Heim?"

"I will go to Prontera first, to check in with Bishop Paul. Alexander specifically asked me not to mention any of this to my superiors, which was difficult to agree to. After that, I plan to return to Glast Heim. I hope this will all be resolved quickly."

* * *

"Didn't we clear that room already?" Naolin asked, panting. 

Emelan sat down, warning the others that he needed a little rest before continuing on. Arientuir walked a few steps down the hallway they were in to watch for any trouble and motioned for Naolin to do the same on the other side. Sarita and Dimion sat down next to Emelan to replenish their energy while he did, and Korinn hid, ready to attack anything that might find them here.

"I'm sorry guys," Arientuir said. "I shouldn't have backed us into a room filled with monsters when we already had enough of them to deal with."

"No, I think Naolin's right," Sarita said. "We cleared this room out earlier today; there's no way you could have known it would be populated with monsters again."

Positioned now between the casters and the darkness, Naolin wondered, "How could they have gotten past us and back to this room? We've covered most of the ground floor, and there were no other routes they could've taken to get from upstairs and into there."

"Maybe they didn't come from upstairs," Emelan suggested.

"Where else would they have come from?" Korinn's voice came from right next to Naolin, startling him. She chuckled lightly. "Sorry."

"I don't know," Emelan shrugged. "But if Naolin is right, how else do you explain it?"

Naolin noticed movement in the shadows he was staring into, but before he had a chance to warn the others, a blue blur rushed at him. He instinctively brought his shield up; the creature knocked him back a little, but didn't hurt him. Korinn was behind the wolf immediately, attacking it with a backstab. After the wolves Naolin had faced a year ago, regular ones gave him no pause. However, this was no regular wolf; it was a Vagabond wolf, a pack leader, larger and stronger than a normal wolf. This recognition was evidenced by the fact that it did not die to Korinn's backstab, as previous wolves had. It also proved its identity by howling a long, ear-piercing howl, after which five smaller wolves appeared behind it. Naolin backed up a few steps, and Korinn also moved toward the rest of the group. The hallway exploded with an orange glow as a _fire wall_ went up between them and the wolves. Naolin stood still for a moment, watching the wolves push against the fire, yelping in pain. He felt a brush of wind as Arientuir rushed past him and straight for the Vagabond. As the _fire wall_ dissipated, Naolin charged at the other wolves, using _Bash_ to kill one right away, and mowing the rest down quickly. With the rest of the party's efforts focused on the Vagabond, it was all but dead when Naolin turned around. Dimion got in the killing blow in the form of an arrow to the temple, and the wolf flipped over, unmoving.

Korinn began to pick up the items the group of monsters had dropped, and Emelan told the rest, "Since you guys didn't need my help during that fight, I'm ready to go on now."

"Well then, on we go," Arientuir announced. He moved back in the direction he'd been guarding, which led to a staircase they'd found earlier today. They'd had to retreat this way, pulling some of the monsters with them, because there'd been more than they'd wanted to tangle with at once. Now they hoped to clear the staircase and reach the second story. However, as it turned out, they'd brought more away from the staircase than they'd meant to. Out of the shadows now came a tall, pale skeleton, wearing a rusted, metal helmet with a large spike attached to the top of it. It danced sideways, straight toward Emelan, carrying a sharp, curved dagger in each hand.

"Watch it!" Arientuir called, breaking into a run to reach the acolyte. Before Emelan could react, the skeleton swung its back arm around and slashed at his midsection. Emelan cried out in pain and fell to the ground as Arientuir swung his sword at the creature, then kicked it to push it away from the injured acolyte.

"Geez, that's a skeleton general," Dimion groaned. "It won't be easily defeated; I think it's time to see what we can really do." As he spoke, two more skeletal figures came out of the shadows. Naolin recognized them as archer and soldier skeletons, one of each.

The archer turned out to be a non-issue, as Sarita immediately blasted it with _fire bolt_, and it crumbled to the ground in pieces. Korinn rushed at the soldier, dagger drawn, and Naolin knew she could handle that one alone as well. He stepped next to Emelan, offering him a hand up. The acolyte was holding his hand on his stomach, and Naolin saw the blood streaming through his fingers.

"Heal yourself, quickly," he said. The acolyte was already doing so. Naolin knew they'd need a healer in this fight. He gripped his fire tsurugi tightly and grinned with anticipation as he ran toward the skeleton general. This is what he'd come here for.


	8. Chapter 7

Lena had stayed in Alberta for a while. She'd said that Alexander wasn't in any immediate danger, and that Bishop Paul could wait a little longer, especially when she learned that Naolin wasn't there. Lena met Missy's mother and had dinner with them. She left after nightfall, teleporting herself to Prontera with a promise to keep Missy updated as best as she could.

Missy noticed that the number of visitors had hugely dwindled today, which she was happy for. It had also been nice to have someone around to talk to. Naolin was a good friend, but somehow she couldn't let herself completely break down in front of him, which she'd felt like doing every time he'd asked her how she was doing. Part of her was glad that this event in Payon had come up when it did, so perhaps when she saw him again, the emotions wouldn't be so fresh.

Early the next morning, Missy woke up with a terrible headache. _Figures_, she thought miserably. After a few more hours sleep and a warm bath, she felt better, but not great. Her mom wasn't home today; she'd decided to take a trip to Prontera to set up her shop for a day or so, to make up for a week of not vending, something she said they couldn't afford now. That was when Missy learned what Naolin had done with the coal and steel she'd asked him to get rid of. He'd given it all to Jayde, who said she was grateful to both of them.

When Missy heard a knock on the front door, she considered not answering it. She did not feel like dealing with some remote relative she'd never even heard of today, especially with her mom not home. However, she opened the door anyway, to reveal a young, red-haired man, who looked familiar, but she wasn't sure she recognized..

"Missy Kay?" he asked, sounding unsure himself. He was dressed in thief's clothes, and after hearing his voice, Missy knew who he was.

"Blackthore?" she smiled widely, completely surprised.

He returned the smile, fully recognizing his old friend now too. It had been a year and a half since they'd seen each other, which Missy suspected had to do with her training partner as much as anything else. She never could figure out why these two disliked each other so much. Missy and Blackthore's only contact over time had been through letters, which tended to be pretty far spread out. And now here he was, standing in her kitchen.

"I did not want to come too close to the funeral, I'd imagine you had enough to deal with at the time," Blackthore explained. "But I am deeply sorry for your loss, and I was not about to leave that for a letter to say."

"I'm glad you came," Missy replied. "You picked a good time; things have finally started to settle down around here." She was still amazed at how much he had changed in a year and a half. "It has been a long time."

"Yes, it has," Blackthore agreed. "And you look prettier than I remember." Missy blushed. He looked at her for a minute before saying, "So I suggest we make sure to meet up more often, and not let something so horrible be the only thing that brings us together."

"That's a good idea. I'm sure I won't be the best company today anyway."

"Nonsense. Just being with you is the best company one could ask for." One thing that had not changed about Blackthore was how much he complimented her. He managed to convince her to at least take a walk with him, since the weather was still decent. Then he'd be on his way.

They walked the streets of Alberta for fifteen minutes and were near the front gates when Blackthore pointed ahead and asked, "Someone you know?"

She looked where he was pointing and smiled. Today was turning into a decent day after all.

* * *

"Watch behind you!" The last thing Emelan wanted was one of his party members getting knocked out the window three stories up.

"Wow," Arientuir breathed, noticing how close behind him that window was. "Thanks, Em." After almost three days of fighting in this place, these six strangers had learned to work together almost flawlessly. Which was important, considering some of the creatures they'd found on the second and third floors. They'd defeated an Am Mut, a dokebi leader, which had been summoning the dokebis they'd already found and killed. They'd also discovered a Gajomart, which had created the purple horongs from its own red flame. These had not been easy fights, but most of the members of the party were pretty strong. Even Emelan, while being an acolyte, was a very skilled healer, and Naolin had a feeling he was very close to priesthood. Naolin almost felt a little out of place with so many powerful people, but they never made him feel inadequate, and he worked hard to make sure that he did not hold them back.

Now, they were in a room filled with some of the same monsters they'd run across the first day. However, the number of creatures they were forced to fight at once was far greater. What made matters worse was that even after how long they'd been in here, clearing monsters left and right, the volume of enemies in the castle didn't seem to be diminishing very much.

The current fight seemed to be nearing its end. Sarita was casting less spells that affected a large area and was targeting individual monsters.

"Gotta wind this down, guys," Emelan warned, indicating that he was almost out of energy.

Arientuir nodded in response. "Korinn, do me a favor and stalk out the door. Make sure we don't have anything out there waiting for their turn to attack or something."

Korinn disappeared immediately. Naolin thrust his sword at one dokebi while blocking the attack of another with his shield. The second one suddenly fell dead with an arrow in its chest, and he finished off the first at the same time. Looking around the room, it appeared that anything not dead was dying quickly. In a last ditch effort to go out fighting, an archer skeleton turned its attention toward Emelan and used _Double Strafe_ right as it was killed. Emelan promptly healed himself, then sat down heavily.

"Just give me a minute," he requested.

Korinn's voice came over the party channel. "Ari, we've got another Vagabond one way, and an army of nine tails with what I can only assume is a Cat O' Nine Tails the other way. Neither are coming this way yet, but I wouldn't expect it to be long."

Arientuir grimaced and looked over at the acolyte. "Looks like a minute is about all you're gonna get, Em."

* * *

Julius McCloud and his cousin Mikayla hurried toward Missy and Blackthore. Julius felt horrible coming so long after Bramen's death. He had been west of Morroc, helping Mikayla train in the Pyramids. The news didn't reach him until this morning, at which point he'd told Mikayla training was on hold, and requested a warp. She'd insisted on coming with him, which he knew was only because she wanted to see Naolin.

After pointing them out to Missy, Blackthore realized who they were himself. When they reached Missy, Julius greeted her with a hug. Missy said hi to Mikayla, who returned the greeting.

"Julius, Mikayla, you remember—" Missy began.

"Blackthore," Julius interrupted, reaching out to shake the thief's hand. "Of course we remember."

"Where's Naolin?" Mikayla asked, sounding disappointed. Missy briefly explained the situation in Payon.

"I sure have been behind in the news," Julius grumbled.

Blackthore decided it was time to leave and gave Missy a hug goodbye, reminding her of their promise to meet more often. Missy was pretty sure she'd been hugged more in the last week than in all of her life before that. Mikayla excused herself soon after Blackthore, saying that maybe he'd like a free warp somewhere. Missy noticed that she got over the disappointment of missing Naolin pretty fast.

Looking at Julius now, Missy still couldn't quite get used to such foreign clothes on him. She did not go to Juno, but she saw Julius not long after his transformation from mage to sage. The robes he wore now were extravagantly adorned, like nothing Missy had ever seen before.

"Come, let's sit and talk," Julius said, guiding her to a bench nearby.

* * *

That evening, after another hard day of fighting, Naolin's party entered the dining hall in the castle with everyone else. As soon as everyone was seated, Ross stood up at the front of the room again and called for quiet.

"Alright, listen up! I've got some information for you all." The room finally went silent. "I'm sure by now you've all noticed that your efforts here have barely made a dent." A few murmurs of agreement. "I went in with one of the teams today, and we seem to have found the reason. Monsters are being fed back into the castles, even as we kill others off. There appears to be some sort of massive cave below the forest filled with these creatures."

Through his com-disc, Naolin heard Dimion say, "Figures."

Sarita added, "Anyone else feel like we just wasted three days?"

"Your goal is now going to be altered a bit," Ross continued. "Before you attempt to clear the castle completely, you need to find a way to close off the cave access point. Now, we will be working all night on the best ways to do that, and we'll let you know what we come up with in the morning, before you head out."

As Ross stepped away, the noise in the room grew as this news was discussed amongst those in the dining hall. Naolin's own party chattered away over their com-disc line. Tomorrow should prove an interesting day.

* * *

The next day was miserable. Missy's mother had written that she'd be in Prontera longer than she'd expected, and Missy was left alone all day for the first time since learning of her father's death. She was listless, and yet couldn't stay still. She couldn't stand being in the empty house; it felt colder than the air outside, which had again fallen in temperature. She left the house in an attempt to fill her mind with something other than her own thoughts, but found that the rest of the town mocked her with its ability to move on and continue life as usual. Missy desperately longed to do the same, but couldn't shake the numbness that was steadily spreading throughout her mind and body.

She wandered the streets, never staying in one place long. As much as she could, she avoided anywhere people were, which is what made it so difficult later to determine what happened to her.

* * *

_Two days later…_

Payon was filled with excitement. It was practically like a festival in the center of town. One by one, the parties had returned from their battles completely victorious. The operation had gone smoothly overall. The Payon council had great plans for the structures, and promised full details at a later date.

Naolin joined in the celebration for a while, talking and laughing with his new friends, sharing stories with others, and listening to speculation about the possible future uses of the castles they'd just claimed for Payon. As his party had agreed to do at the beginning of the week, they now divided up the items that had been left behind by the various monsters they'd killed. Most of it was pretty basic stuff, only really worth the zeny he'd get from the tool dealer. But Naolin did receive a few decent items out of the deal, and said goodbye to his party and to Payon, heading back to Alberta. He hadn't expected to be gone quite so long, and wondered how Missy was doing.

When he reached the small town, he went directly to Missy's house. Inside, what he saw confused him. Jayde was sitting at the kitchen table, her face moist with fresh tears. Only this time, the emotion displayed there was fear, not sorrow. The door opened suddenly behind him, and he was surprised to see Lena standing in the doorway. She also had a grim expression on her face. For a moment, no one spoke, and both refused to make eye contact with him.

Finally Naolin demanded, "What is it? Tell me what's going on!"


	9. Chapter 8

Lena spoke first, sounding a little out of breath. "Missy is gone."

"'Gone?'" Naolin repeated. "What does that mean, gone how?"

"We don't know exactly," Lena replied.

"Well, when was the last time you saw her?"

Jayde quickly relayed what she knew, which wasn't much. She'd returned to Prontera after staying there a day longer than she'd intended and was unable to locate Missy anywhere in Alberta. Unable to reach Naolin, she'd frantically contacted Lena, who she'd only just met, but knew was a close friend of her daughter's. Lena had come right away and promised to do everything possible to find Missy.

"And I think I did!" Lena added eagerly. "Or I know where to start looking, at least. I tracked down a priest who said he saw a merchant with a light hair color wander into a warp portal he had opened for some guild mates. I intend to head there and search for Missy; I will send you a message as soon as I know anything." Lena turned to walk out the door and Naolin followed her.

"Where are we going?" Naolin asked. She started to say something, but stopped when she saw the firm look on his face.

"You are going to Al de Baran. I will meet you there as soon as I can." He nodded and stepped through the portal she created.

He'd never been to Al de Baran before. He was standing in a large patch of landscaped grass not far from the center of town. For such a remote place, Naolin was surprised at how crowded it was here, though he soon found his initial impression to be somewhat deceiving. Outside of this central courtyard, the town appeared all but abandoned. He could only assume that the draw of the crowd to this spot had something to do with the towering structure in the center. None of this concerned Naolin now though, it was all just a passing thought as he scanned the crowd for his missing friend. Assuming that the only reason Lena had sent him here was because it was where Missy had been sent, he held out hope that she'd be here somewhere. But part of him knew that if she'd really just been warped to a town, no matter how far away it was, she would have come home or at least contacted her mother by now, two days later. And that part was winning out.

He waited impatiently for an hour, hoping Lena had a great reason for making him wait so long. When she finally appeared on that same spot in the grass, Naolin stormed toward her angrily. She could see his frustration and held up her hand. It was then that Naolin noticed the man standing with her.

"I apologize for taking so long, but it was necessary," Lena explained. "I knew I would need some help where I am going. Alexander is a powerful wizard."

"Where is it you're going exactly?" Naolin demanded, ignoring the wizard. "And what do you mean, 'I'? I'm going with you."

Alexander walked away, to the nearby Kafra, and Lena looked at Naolin firmly. "The priest said that the warp Missy wandered into would have put her in the depths of the clock tower. It is a very dangerous place. We will find Missy, I promise, but you have to understand that you cannot help her by putting yourself in unnecessary danger." Naolin didn't respond, knowing that there was no point. Lena walked over to Alexander, but Naolin stopped her before they went in.

"Take this at least." He handed her a com-disc, briefly explaining how to use it. He'd talked to one of the Payon officials, a man who had been friends with Naolin's uncle, and convinced him to give him a second com-disc for his friend who had only missed the event due to a death in the family. "Just keep me updated," he requested as Lena took the device.

The moment they were out of sight, Naolin went into action. He asked the nearest guard where the tool dealer in this town was, from whom he then bought a large supply of fly wings and potions. There was no way he was going to sit around and wait. If Missy was alone in a place that dangerous, his own safety was unimportant.

Inside the tower, Naolin used quite a few of his potions and fly wings much quicker than he'd expected to. As he got better at determining how fast and how dangerous some of the various monsters he came across were, he was able to largely cut back on the amount of supplies he used. Within an hour, he was thoroughly lost in this place. There seemed to be many levels above the ground floor he'd started from, and even a basement, which he'd avoided so far.

There was very little activity on the com-disc. Lena checked in now and then, but never with any real news. Naolin asked every person he came across, who wasn't too busy with their own fighting, if they'd seen a young, female merchant with white hair. So far, none had.

When he finally decided he needed to check out the basement, he went cautiously. The first creature he encountered looked familiar, but he knew it would be nothing like the similar monster he'd seen out in a field somewhere. It had a large, round teardrop shaped body from the top of which protruded a long, thin stem. Unlike the green wormtail he'd seen in the past though, this creature was a pale color. Which made the blood dripping down the stem all the more noticeable. The creature was already moving toward him, swinging its stem around in anticipation of the forthcoming attack. He ran back to the ground floor, relieved that the monster didn't show any interest in following him up here. As he stood catching his breath, the priestess's voice came over the com-disc.

"Naolin, do you know if Missy had her cart with her?"

"I don't know, you were at her house longer than I was, did you see it there?"

A pause. "No, I did not; however, I never went beyond the kitchen myself. I only ask because we have discovered an abandoned cart here."

"Where?" he asked quickly.

Lena paused again. Her response was a question of her own. "Naolin, where are you?" He told her, and she sighed, after which came another long pause. Mostly to herself, she said, "I suppose I should have expected this."

"Probably," he replied. He could hear her talking, and a voice responding that he could only assume was Alexander, non e of which he could quite understand. He was constantly eyeing the room around him, ready with a fly wing in case one of those punks or ridewords found him over here. After a minute, Lena addressed him again.

"Alexander and I have already covered most of the top floors. If you are _absolutely certain _that you can avoid injury, it would help for you to start searching in the basement. I presume that you have been using fly wings to move around and avoid the dangerous creatures here?" When he confirmed that, she said, "Be careful, and let us know immediately if you find her."

Naolin found the basement to be even more terrifying than the rest of this place. Unlike the upper floors that were manmade concrete floors and halls, the basement appeared to be a natural cave, with long, dangerous hallways and massive rooms, densely populated with monsters. He found the most humans in a tangle of hallways that contained high orcs, orc archers, a purple-colored relative of the stainer beetle, and small brown bugs that gave _very_ speedy pursuit. He asked everone who would listen about a merchant they may have seen wandering the dungeon, and all he really got were a few sketchy maybes, which was better than he'd been getting upstairs anywhere. Finally, after a half an hour in this particular area, he received a definitive answer.

"Yeah, there was a girl, I'm pretty sure she was a merchant," a hunter offered between taking shots at one of the small brown bugs, which he'd called an arclouze, that was attacking a knight in his party.

"Where was she exactly?" Naolin asked eagerly.

"Pretty much here," the hunter replied, to which Naolin groaned. "Yeah, she was being chased by a drainliar. She's lucky that's all that was after her; this is not place for a first class." The hunter looked pointedly at Naolin. "I fired a few shots at the bat; it went down quickly, but she kept running."

"Where did she go?"

The hunter pointed to a nearby pad that appeared to be a portal to a separate area. "Into the portal?" he clarified. The hunter nodded. Naolin thanked him quickly and ran into the portal himself.

The feel of this new area of the cave was completely different. The previous area was dry and even warm, lit up throughout with torches along the wall. The huge, open room he was standing in was dark, cold, and damp. He could hear water dripping somewhere, and the musty stench was overwhelming. He took a few cautious steps forward and could soon see the shallow pool in the large, open room before him. There was no obvious source of light, but there was a blue glow throughout the cavern. Peppered all over the room, both in and out of that pool, were dark red tentacled creatures and a few lavender-colored rats. One of the former was headed toward him now, so he immediately threw down a fly wing. The new scenery was quite a contrast to the previous. The smell, dampness, and cool air were still there, but the natural cave wall was replaced by walls of concrete that were once again manmade. He was standing in a narrow hall that turned corners on either side of him. Heading left, he found that after that corner was another, and another, and Naolin quickly realized that he was in a maze of walls. Why would someone build something like this in a cave? What was the point?

Naolin checked his supplies. He was down to five potions and three fly wings. And two butterfly wings. He had planned to get Missy out of here with those, but remembered that while he was registered with the Kafra employee in Payon, Missy's registration point was most likely still outside of the Coal Mines. It would be safer than here, but he didn't know if it would be a good idea to send her there alone…if he could find her. He wished he had registered with the Kafra in Al de Baran while he waited on Lena; he could really use more fly wings and potions. He was beginning to feel desperately lost and helpless. His best friend was in trouble or worse, and all he could do was run around avoiding monsters.

Time to move again. Before he got far, he suddenly felt something touch his leg. He looked down and was horrified to see the red tentacles of one of the hydra-like creatures wrapping around his legs. He couldn't even see the actual body of the monster; he assumed it was around yet another corner. His legs felt like they were being stabbed and the pain was intense. He was suddenly knocked off-balance by the creature and watched dismally as one of his butterfly wings fluttered to the ground and out of his reach. He screamed in frustration as he freed himself from the creature's grasp with a fly wing.

Three wings and five potions later, he was still lost somewhere in the labyrinth and losing hope. He was a flick of the wrist away from using a butterfly wing at the next creature attack, knowing it was his only option at that point. In the meantime, he kept on. Lena and Alexander were in the basement by now as well, reportedly combing an area Naolin hadn't even come across yet. He'd informed Lena of his possible need to leave soon, and she'd understood.

As he rounded another corner now, he was intrigued to find a staircase leading out of the mess he was in and back to the rest of the cave. He went down it, stopping near the bottom. Somewhere in the darkness ahead, he heard the squeaking of a rat and knew that it would effectively end his search if it spotted him. He turned around quickly to head back up the stairs, knowing quite well that going back in there would be futile, but another noise stopped him. It was closer, very close, and sounded like the rustle of clothing, much more a human sound than a monster sound. There was a space between the staircase and the wall, just big enough for a person to fit into, and deep enough that one had to stand right in front of it to see into it. Naolin did so cautiously, keeping an eye out for that rat, which sounded a little further away now.

Sitting all the way back into the corner, on the cold, hard floor, was a young woman, a merchant, looking at Naolin as if he were a monster himself.


	10. Chapter 9

Missy looked every bit like she'd been on her own in a tower full of dangerous creatures for two days. Her normally white hair was dingy, with pieces of dirt stuck in it. Her clothes were ripped and matted with dirt and blood. Her eyes were wide with fear, and she was shivering in her damp clothes.

"Missy?" Naolin called quietly, cautiously, as he moved slowly towards her.

Her eyes finally made contact with his, and she said something he couldn't quite hear. He reached her and knelt down beside her, surveying her injuries. "Are you here?"

"What?" he questioned, still unable to completely understand her.

"Is it you?"

"You didn't think I'd let you have all the fun of exploring this place by yourself, did you?"

She seemed to find the humor in that, but couldn't smile. She appeared to be in considerable pain, and Naolin could see why. She had multiple wounds, some fresher than others, some even partially healed, indicating to him that she had at least had some potions to start with. Unfortunately, he was out now as well.

"I found her," Naolin said over the com-disc to Lena.

"Where?" she immediately inquired. Naolin tried to explain where he was as best as he could. He heard Alexander say something short, then Lena spoke again. "Okay, we are on our way."

Missy was looking at him with a furrowed brow. "Who are you talking to?"

He smiled at her. "I'll explain later." To Lena again he said, "She's hurt pretty badly."

"We will be there as quickly as we can; do whatever you can for her in the meantime."

"Of course." The most pressing injury seemed to be a long, deep gash in her leg that even now was bleeding heavily. Naolin did the only thing he could think of – he tore off the sleeve of his shirt to use as a tourniquet. As he was leaning toward her to tie it, she stared as his bare arm for a moment, then reached her arm up. When he saw where her hand was heading, he pulled back a bit. He didn't really know what she was doing, and why now of all times, but she was persistent. It was his left arm that was now sleeveless, and she was reaching for the scar. Her touch was gentle and warm, despite her constant shivering. She said nothing, so neither did he. What he was feeling was hard to describe, even in his own mind, but he knew that he had never in his life trusted someone enough to let them so close to what he held guarded, both physically and emotionally, before her. And that meant something.

He forced his mind back to the matter at hand. "How are you feeling? Can you walk?" She nodded slowly, then stopped as if considering the question. She nodded again. "Good. Now don't think we're going to make this rescuing business some kind of regular habit." He was worried about her; she still seemed very out of sorts. He wanted to keep her responding.

Naolin suddenly heard a deep, throaty chuckle coming from the top of the stairs above them. The sound caused the hairs on the back of his neck to stand up, a laugh that had once haunted his dreams. He didn't want to look up, imagining that if he didn't acknowledge the presence, it would go away. Of course, that was a foolish though, he knew. Naolin looked up slowly, hoping he was wrong in his recognition of that laugh, but knowing he wasn't.

Standing at the top of the stairs was a Wanderer. And not just any Wanderer, a Wanderer who had once called itself Garrett. In that low, gravelly voice, the demon said, "Isn't this just perfect?" It descended the stairs slowly, regally.

Naolin looked back at Missy and hurriedly handed her his only butterfly wing. "Go, get out of here." She shook her head and refused to take the wing. "Take it, go on," he demanded. "You're in no shape to be dealing with this guy now." She merely shook her head again, too stubborn to save her own life. He heard the footsteps directly behind him now and turned around to face the Wanderer, putting himself between it and Missy.

"It looks as though we are right back where we left off," the demon sneered.

"You did this to her," Naolin accused. "You brought her here."

The Wanderer laughed again. "Do not flatter yourself. You think I have had nothing better to do for the last year than to fixate on a few pathetic humans? I did not even know that this one was still alive until seeing her here. No indeed, this was not my doing. But I will certainly make use of the gift I have been given."

Naolin drew his sword, which brought a twisted grin to the Wanderer's hollow skull. The demon in turn placed its hand on the hilt of its dagger that was in a long sheath. Before Naolin could react, it drew the dagger and slashed at him, replacing the weapon as quickly as it was drawn. Naolin grunted and grabbed his side where the dagger had cut him, right through his armor. It was a painful wound, but not debilitating. He swung his own sword at the Wanderer, but it only blocked the blade with its sheath. How had he forgotten how fast this thing was?

The Wanderer attacked him again, slicing halfway through his sleeveless arm. The pain was much more severe, but he was surprised that the demon hadn't killed him yet. He took the opportunity after its last assault to attack it again. His first swing was blocked once again, but he immediately brought his sword around and attacked again, and again. The third blow landed, catching the Wanderer squarely under his arm. Naolin knew he couldn't have injured it much, but the Wanderer seemed slightly surprised that he'd even gotten a hit in. When Naolin tried to capitalize on the moment and attack the demon again, it swung around in a complete circle and came back with his blade low this time, knocking Naolin off his feet. He felt the sting in both of his thighs and didn't need to look at the fresh injury. He stood back up as quickly as the pain would let him and held his sword ready once again.

The Wanderer sheathed his dagger and stood without attacking for a moment. Naolin didn't attack either, finding it a pointless act. It tilted its head to one side and stared at him. The hollow eyes in that pale face chilled Naolin even more than the cold environment. Finally the demon spoke. "Well, are you ready to fight now?"

Naolin's entire spirit deflated as he realized that this evil thing had simply been messing with him so far. And his whole body screamed in pain as a result. Of course, as he'd originally anticipated, the real fight would end quickly, and not in his favor. He turned around to face Missy. She was standing by now and had drawn her own sword, as if to help him fight.

"No," he pleaded with her. "Take it. Go!" He tried one last time to give her the butterfly wing before the Wanderer decided that it had had enough fun and killed them both. He could see tears in her eyes as she shook her head once again.

Behind him, the Wanderer chuckled once again. "I knew you would be a coward when you were forced to accept your demise. You will not face your death?"

Naolin did not turn around. He could not remove his eyes from Missy's. He did not regret losing his life to save hers, but he did regret failing to save her after all. The blow was expected, he could see it in Missy's eyes. Naolin was on the ground, seeing nothing but a blinding light from the excruciating pain. It was not immediately fatal, but he knew that strike was coming next. He rolled to his side and could see legs…first one pair, then three. What happened next was fast and simultaneous. Naolin's view of those legs was blocked by spikes of ice that suddenly jutted out of the rock floor right in front of him. And at the same moment, the extreme pain throughout his body dissolved. He felt as though a weight had literally lifted from him, and he jumped to his feet almost involuntarily.

Perhaps it was involuntary, as Missy seemed to be pulling him to his feet. He heard a voice yell his name.

"They're here," he coughed, still feeling a few aches from the fight.

"Yes," Missy confirmed in amazement. "Lena…but _how_…" She didn't finish her question, as her legs seemed to give out, and she collapsed to the floor.

"No!" Naolin caught her, stumbling back to the ground himself. "Lena!" She hadn't healed Missy, just him. As a priestess, she probably knew better than he did how close to death he had been. He strained to look past the ice wall to see what was happening out there. Lena and Alexander stood behind a wall of fire as Alexander charged up a spell. Unlike other monsters, who would rush into a fire wall to get at the enemy behind it, the Wanderer stood back, waiting. When the wizard finished casting, the demon stepped aside quickly and watched as the bolts of fire fell to the ground harmlessly. Naolin sighed dejectedly. Could nothing touch this thing?

"Lena!" he called. She looked at him with a deeply apologetic face, and brought her hands up as she healed Missy. At the same moment that Naolin felt Missy stir in his arms, the ice wall in front of them disappeared. Lena cast a second heal, which Naolin could feel healing him completely. This caught the Wanderer's attention, and it growled as it turned back to the now exposed corner that Naolin and Missy were in. The ice wall was replaced just as he reached it, and he turned back to Alexander angrily. It rushed at the wizard with dagger drawn, but its attack merely bounced off of an invisible wall around Alexander, who was again casting a spell. The demon again managed to avoid the wizard's magic, but was hit immediately after by an unexpected flash of light. The Wanderer screamed in frustration and charged at Lena, pinning her against the wall. The ground under it started to break up as a result of a spell Alexander cast under it, causing it to stumble backwards and release Lena.

"You cannot defeat me," the Wanderer stated. Naolin noticed that it sounded a bit rattled, which gave him a little hope back.

Alexander replied, "And why do you think that? You are a Wanderer. I have fought and killed many of your kind lately."

"I know you already can see that I am not like those others you have killed. You cannot defeat me."

"We shall see."

The battle continued and, overall, no one appeared to have the advantage at any one point. For once, Naolin had no qualms about sitting back and watching the fight, rather than helping, and it wasn't just because he knew that he was no match for the monster. He still held his trembling friend in his arms, and though she had been fully healed, she'd still spent the last two days down here on her own. He was not about to leave her alone.

Alexander continued to try various tricks and tactics to hurt the Wanderer, though Lena's occasional _Holy Light_ blasts were proving to be just about as damaging. The Wanderer did not lack for damage output of its own, but Lena seemed to be keeping them both alive well enough. Naolin knew quite well that all the demon had to do was survive until they both ran out of energy, then they would be no better off than he was.

Soon enough, the moment came. Somehow the Wanderer knew. "So now you will see that I was right."

Alexander's face never registered the slightest bit of concern as he replied, "I don't believe so."

"Your power lies in your magic, and your energy is depleted," the demon scoffed.

"Now _you _will see that I am not like other wizards you may have fought," Alexander stated. He nodded at Lena who cast Kyrie Eleison on him once again, the spell that shielded him from any damage. He then held his bone wand in front of him with both hands and closed his eyes. Streams of light began to swirl around him and his robe flapped and fluttered as if caught in a strong wind. This effect lasted about ten seconds, and as the lights and wind died, he opened his eyes, staring straight at the confused Wanderer. The demon suddenly realized what had just happened, and Naolin's understanding wasn't far behind. Somehow Alexander had replenished most of his energy with that spell.

"But that's impossible!" the Wanderer snarled. "Wizards can't do that!"

Alexander smirked. "This one can."


	11. Chapter 10

Before the Wanderer could respond, Alexander shot a _Frost Diver _at it, leaving it frozen in a state of shock and confusion. The wizard immediately began to charge up another spell, and a bright white light glowed at his feet as he cast. It took a few seconds, and ended with a large ball of electricity hovering in front of him, which hummed as it flew at its target. The _Jupitel Thunder_ threw the Wanderer back into the ice wall that was guarding Naolin and Missy with enough force to break most of the spikes of ice in half. When the electricity dissipated, the Wanderer stumbled away from the ice and turned to face Naolin. Its face was expressionless as it held its sheathed dagger in front of itself, vertical to the ground. Suddenly, small flames began to engulf the Wanderer from the ground up, a horrific sight that left nothing but the demon's pale, mocking skull behind. Naolin remained still, waiting for some sort of confirmation that this creature was indeed dead, gone for good.

"Let's go," said Alexander. "We needn't be here any longer."

Lena hurried over to Naolin, and he let her help Missy up. She seemed to be waking up a little, as if a fog was clearing in her mind. Lena said she would open a warp portal for them, but as Naolin followed them out into the open, he stopped as he walked by the skull.

"It is dead," Lena assured him, noticing his hesitation.

"Yeah…" It wasn't that he didn't believe her, but he just felt like this was incomplete somehow. In a sudden, decisive motion, Naolin brought his foot up and stomped the skull into hundreds of tiny fragments. He considered it the best use his new boots had gotten since he'd received them.

"Feel better?" Missy asked, actually giving him a small smile. He really did.

Lena took them back out to Al de Baran, saying that she thought it best to let Missy get cleaned up and calmed down before going back home to her already distraught mother. However, she would go to the Al de Baran Kafra employee right away to send the message that Missy was safe. While she did that, Naolin headed to the inn with Missy. They stopped in front of the building, and Missy didn't move for a moment.

"You okay?" Naolin asked awkwardly. Of course she wasn't, but he just felt so inadequate in this situation.

She shrugged. "I guess," she muttered sullenly.

"Are you upset with me?" he asked, immediately regretting the question.

"Of course not!" But her eyes flashed with anger, betraying her true feelings, which Naolin didn't understand.

"Missy, talk to me. What's wrong?"

"Why did you stick around? Why did you take me away from there?"

"You would have died down there," he replied, appalled by what she was saying.

She looked at him for a moment before saying, "You took me away from my home, from my father. Who _needed_ me. And for what? A silly _sword_." She spat those last words at him, and it stung. "You have fulfilled any obligation that you may have had. Feel free to be on your way." She turned and walked into the inn, leaving him to stand alone in confusion. This was the second time she'd suggested he leave her, only this time he was quite sure she didn't mean it. He headed into the inn, intending to wait in the lobby while she cleaned up. However, she was not cleaning up, she was sitting in a chair in the corner of the lobby with her head in her hands. He walked over and sat down next to her. After a minute, she spoke, while staring straight ahead.

"How could he do this to us? Didn't he know how much we need him? They were just weapons, not worth his life!" She vented for a minute or so like this, and Naolin let her go. Her voice rose as she went, and he got the distinct impression that she had discovered who she was really angry at this time. "How? How could he put his work ahead of his family like that?" She suddenly started crying, uncontrollable sobs that shook her whole body. It was the first time she'd cried since hearing of her father's death, and Naolin was actually relieved to see it. He put his arm around her shoulders to comfort her and felt her relax a little. She looked at him, her still dirty, bloody cheeks streaked with tears she was making no attempt to wipe away for once.

"Why are you still here?" The tone in which she asked the question in was not one of anger or annoyance. She mostly just seemed surprised.

His answer was simple. "I don't leave when my best friend needs me, I don't care what she says." Missy leaned her head lightly on his shoulder for a moment before finally heading for the washroom.

* * *

A few days later, Missy and Naolin were back in Alberta, thinking about finally getting back to training. Missy was feeling a lot less lost and alone lately, and had been told she was now grieving healthily, whatever that meant. Yesterday, she had had a long conversation with her mother that helped alleviate a lot of her guilt over the apprenticeship she'd let go to waste.

"Your father was determined that you make your decision for yourself," her mother had explained. "He was never upset that you hadn't decided yet, and I promise you, it never bothered him that you might not want to be a forging blacksmith like him. He always said that you would find your dream, and that it would be selfish for him to expect yours to be his."

"But all of his knowledge, his experience, it's all been wasted because of me," Missy had lamented. "You can't expect me to be okay with this just because he was."

"No, I don't," her mother had agreed. "But your father's work is not all lost. You've seen his book, he put everything he knew in that book, everything that made his weapons unique."

"Yes, of course. But how does that affect anything?"

"This is where you can help." Missy hadn't understood that statement at all. Jayde had handed her a piece of paper with her father's handwriting on it. "I found this in the book, between two pages. I'm surprised you didn't find it first, you've been looking through that book so much." The paper stated Bramen's wishes for this book, for all of his work, if he were ever to pass on. He wanted his only daughter to choose his replacement, be it herself or someone else. He knew it would be a lot to ask of her in that situation, but he felt confident that she would find the perfect new owner for the book, the best person to continue his work. Missy had cried as she read it. She understood the request, but she couldn't imagine being able to carry it out. Her mother had told her that she'd help however she could, but the end result was ultimately up to Missy.

Missy had plenty of time to work all of that out though, and today she was really looking forward to a little training. However, Lena had asked them to stay in Alberta one more day, though she couldn't explain why. In the meantime, Naolin told Missy he had a few surprised for her, apparently having put it off until a better time, and she agreed that this was it.

First he handed her the com-disc, explaining how he'd gotten it and how it worked. Missy was very impressed with the device, and touched that he'd arranged one for her too. The second item was what Naolin claimed was the best of all the loot his party had found in their castle raid. It was a beautiful wreath of red flowers that he said was to replace the ribbon headband that she'd lost while training months ago.

The third and final item he had for her was something she'd seen before. He pulled out a sword, a tsurugi, the blade was rough and textured, and more brown than silver.

"I apologize for my timing last time, I should have waited to give you this."

Missy shook her head. He was apologizing when she was the one who had yelled at him. "It's me who should be sorry. I was rude and should have listened to—"

"Stop. It's not important, really. However, this is. It is not just some sword, you see." He handed it to her, and she took it, still not understand the importance of this particular weapon. "This is an earth tsurugi, it completes your set."

Missy looked the sword over carefully. She knew it was Bramen's work without even looking at the touch mark. "But where did you get it?"

"This is the last weapon your father made. Your mom said it was meant for me, but I don't agree. It belongs to you." Missy was speechless. This was such an incredible thing, that her father's desire to give her a sword of every element could be fulfilled, even after his death. And it was because Naolin was willing to give her his own sword. She didn't know what to say, nothing felt adequate. She wanted to hug him, to tell him that everything he had done for her had been more than she'd ever expected, but she didn't even get the chance to say a simple "thank you".

Lena was suddenly here and needed them to accompany her to the front gate of Alberta. Missy's mother was already there, and standing in front of a large, oddly-shaped object draped in a thick, maroon curtain. A crowd had gathered, forming a circle around the object.

"What's going on?" Missy inquired.

Lena just smiled and walked over to the curtain. "Ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the officials of all of the Uniform States of Rune-Midgard, I am proud to present you with our tribute to Bramen, the master blacksmith of Alberta." With that, she pulled on the curtain, which fell, revealing a four foot tall slab of marble, to which was affixed a three foot long dagger. It was a recreation, down to the touch mark, of one of Bramen's daggers, oversized and with a dulled blade. It was beautiful, and amazing, and Missy couldn't believe that it had been done in memory of her father. Jayde began to weep, which in turn caused Missy's own tears to spill over. She walked over and gave Lena a hug, thanked her, then went to her mom and hugged her while she cried.

* * *

EPILOGUE

Missy and Naolin stood together in front of the grave marker. So much had happened, time had passed, and though the pain may never go away, it was time to say goodbye to him. Missy was holding flowers, which she now laid gently on the grave. Naolin found the gesture incredibly sweet of her, as she'd never known him. Even Naolin had never gotten a chance to know his brother before his death.

They were in a small graveyard outside of Geffen, where Naolin's brother had been buried. He'd never been to the grave, and he felt as though he was finally closing this dark chapter in his life. And it was all thanks to this girl who was standing back up now, after placing the flowers. He stared at her for a moment, noticing how beautiful she looked with the Puppy Love placed gently in her hair. Somehow he'd never thought much about that before.

He looked away quickly as she turned to face him. "Ready to go?" she asked softly.

"In a minute," he replied. She looked at him curiously. "I should have told you this before, and I'm sorry I didn't." _Probably not the best way to start_, he thought, and tried to continue quickly. "There's just something else you should know, about my family. I have another brother."

She looked like she wanted to say something, but couldn't decide on what. "Okay," she finally said. "Is he alive, or…?" She obviously didn't want to finish that question, especially considering where they were standing.

"Yes, he is. At least, I assume so. I haven't had any contact with him in seven years either. He is a year younger than me, and when I left my parents' home, he stayed with them, having, of course, _not_ killed their son.

"And you didn't mention this before because…?"

"I don't know really. It's not like it's something I didn't want you to know about, but I guess I just feel like he's lost to me. He's with them. And now I have given up any chance to ever see him again by walking away from my parents' offer to go with them. I wanted to tell you then, but I didn't want you to feel guilty about it."

"Why would I feel guilty?"

He looked at her for a moment, almost afraid to tell her why. "Because the only reason I wouldn't even consider leaving is because of you."

**THE END **


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